Brazil: Life in Rio’s biggest favela | DW Documentary

Brazil: Life in Rio’s biggest favela | DW Documentary

This will be an experiment for me. I’ve often filmed in the favelas, Brazil’s poor urban neighborhoods. This time I’m moving in — into Rio’s biggest favela for a few days. Let’s see what it’s like to live here, even if only for a few days

What will I learn of everyday life, the drugs, violence, crime? Camera down! Now we’re off to the streets where the drugs are sold. We really must respect the rules: Cameras down, otherwise they could lose it with us. How does this violence really affect people’s lives?

For me, Rio’s the most beautiful city in the world I’ve been living here for almost 5 years as a correspondent for the ARD. What struck me on the very first day is the massive divide between rich and poor. The inequality is so visible. Especially in the favelas. We’ve often filmed in favelas.

I’ve seen how the residents live, but only in a superficial way. You go in, film, and leave. Now I’d like to know what it’s really like and how it feels to live there. Rocinha — Rio’s largest favela. My home for the next few days.

One thing is clear: we can’t just go out and film on our own. I need company, someone who knows the rules. I know Vagner and Marcelo from previous shoots. They’ve got the OK from the drug gangs who are in charge here and explain to me what I need to watch out for.

Will there be times we have to switch off the camera because we’re not allowed to film? Like in every poor neighbourhood in the world, there are restrictions. But I can assure you, we’ll be free to shoot here. Vagner and Marcelo are my life insurance from now on.

Statistically, one in five people in Rio live in a favela often right next door to the drug gangs. An estimated 200,000 people live here in Rocinha alone. Nobody knows exactly how many. What’s striking here is that it smells different everywhere. Over there like chip fat, here like barbecued meat

And back there like untreated sewage — its grim in this heat. And over and again the smell of weed. I notice a man in the crowd: Adauto Aparecido Santana. He’s doing some serious lifting. Adauto does removals, transports building materials, everything that’s needed, he tells me.

And I’ve just burst into the middle of his outdoor office on the main street of Rocinha. I call this my office, where I wait for work. Here on the Rua Um. Next to the flower shop. It’s where I get the transport jobs that I do on the inside,

In the alleys of the favela. We want to accompany him but his route also takes him to where a gang is selling drugs. Before we can set off — a security briefing. Listen up, boys! We’re about to go up the narrow stairway.

I’ll run up front and give the drug gang the heads up that you’re coming with the camera. If they have a problem with it, I’ll talk to them. The drug gang’s scouts have us on their radar. The lookouts are observing everything that’s going on here and reporting back,

So they know who’s coming in. Security is … taken care of here. And who are they? They’re the ones standing round watching, keeping an eye on things, leaning against the posts. The Olheiros the scouts, keep watch for police and other unwanted guests.

Just a few meters further, we have to turn off the camera, it’s too dangerous. We pass the checkpoint of the Red Commando drug gang. I see a group of heavily armed men and a table with small bags containing white powder — cocaine. For me it feels oppressive; for Adauto, it’s his daily commute.

And then suddenly: this view. Adauto, you’re carrying all these bags of cement up here. The Rocinha’s growing every day, isn’t it? Every day, yes. Because the Rocinha is very central. Everyone wants to build here. A lot of people want to settle here near the wealthy districts.

Bakers, waiters — they all want to live here close to their work. If you’re living in the outer suburbs, you have to take three or four buses a day to get to this area. Do you like it here? Or do you sometimes think: there are a lot of guns here

That could be bad for me and my family? I’ll tell you what I think: the gangs live their lives, and we live ours, you understand? As long as I do my thing and look straight ahead, I won’t get in their way. Is it that simple? I’d like to talk to the gangsters.

But first we have to get to our accommodation. It’s not so easy to find a place to sleep. Very few people here have enough space to accommodate an entire camera crew. Our contact Vagner finds a solution — and it’s underneath this bar. Vagner’s mother rents out apartments. She vacates her apartment for us.

Hello, good afternoon, Ah, the bathroom, Perfect. This is where we’ll be staying. In the thick of it all. It seems peaceful – but I know things can escalate quickly in the favela. Especially where Rio’s police decide to crack down on the drug gangs.

I’ve been in Brazil for four years now, and in this time the police have carried out the most lethal operations to date, resulting in multiple deaths. But there’s been no nationwide outcry. Most recently in July 2022: 19 dead in a police raid in the Complexo Alemão favela.

In total, 1327 people were killed by police violence in the state of Rio de Janeiro in 2022. There were also shootings in Rocinha. Is death part of everyday life here? Living in a favela means taking each day as it comes. You don’t know if tomorrow will be good or bad.

While we’re speaking, someone could be dying from a bullet-wound. A neighbour died hanging up a towel. Boom, dead. The elite police force ‘Bope’ kills the most. I sense a great mistrust of the police. And wonder: what about security at night? Marcelo and Vagner take me with them.

Rocinha’s party zone, the Via Apia is right below us at night. Let’s see. Marcelo’s wife Adriana has come along too. As a woman here, do you feel safe? Yes, there are much more dangerous places. Where? In the city centre. Of Rio? Of Rio.

When I’m on Copacabana beach at night, I don’t feel safe. Why? There are a lot of thieves there. Here, on the other hand, I’m safe. I don’t get robbed, raped or attacked here. Really? Even though we’re here in the favela, I feel safer from rape or mugging.

I thought it’d be the other way around! There are now even trendy bars which attract people from all over Rio including the wealthy neighbourhoods. After a few minutes, Marcelo and Adriana are in the thick of it. But how can you party just a few meters from the gangsters?

As a German, I somehow can’t get my head round it: You’re living here next door to criminals, drug pushers… … you’re provoking me No, no, we really want to understand this! It’s hard to talk about it. We can always talk about the good sides that this favela has.

And 99.9% of the people who live here are really good people who work hard and hope for a better future. I invite the Germans: come to Rocinha and see it with your own eyes: We are a community with open arms that welcomes everyone.

I would also like to talk to those who have the power here. But it’s not easy to get to them Vagner brings me right to the front door. Let’s see if there’s any chance of sleeping Well, once the club music was over at some point, I have to say it’s really quiet.

Much quieter than I thought. Right now. Absolutely ideal for sleeping. The word of the Lord! Excuse me? Outside — you can hear the word of the Lord. Do you want to come? Okay. Give me 30 seconds! Good morning, welcome! Half the neighborhood is praying – including Vagner and his mom.

I’m hungover — and kind of impressed by this pious street service. I’ve heard of the exponential growth of the evangelical free churches in Brazil due to this kind of missionizing. Rocinha a city within a city. Much is improvised. Most of the houses are illegal and yet somehow connected to the public utilities.

They build wherever there’s space. Marcelo tells me that 3 to 4 families often live under the same roof. With a view of one of Rio de Janeiro’s richest districts right next door. What do you think when you see those luxury houses over there? While there’s 200,000 people crammed in here?

It’s a huge contrast: the people over there have gigantic purchasing power. Yes, there’s a terrible rift dividing Brazil. But why? I wonder why, too. Unfortunately, there’s corruption which leads to social inequality. A few have a lot, and many have nothing. Just look at how underfunded everything is here: the water supply, education, infrastructure.

In Rocinha, one in four families 24% lives in extreme poverty. That’s less than ?18 per person per month. In the rich neighbourhoods nextdoor, many residents are millionaires. The inequality becomes even clearer when you look at mortality rates. On average, people in Rocinha live to the age of 52.

Right next door, in the upscale neighborhood of São Conrado, the average life-span is 75 years. Back with Adauto. He’s got a new job. A move. From far down below up to the main road. Adauto comes from Brazil’s hinterland. He came to Rocinha when he was 19 and has worked his way up

To become the favela’s most important transport company. He earns the equivalent of 700 euros a month, almost three times the minimum wage that many people in Rocinha subsist on. How many kilometers do you walk a day? A lot! Maybe 50.

Sometimes I have to carry a load of bags from A to B. With 13 bags and a one kilometre stretch, that’s 26 kilometers. Are you proud of your work? Of course I am! Everything I own is thanks to this job. A small house with a small store. And I rent out three apartments.

A backbreaking job His wife Josiane is more into the delicate side of things. She runs a mobile beauty salon. You can always make money in this field. No matter what kind of crisis the world’s in beauty’s always in demand. We want to be pretty. Exactly! Just like Fabiana.

She is very vain, does her hair, her eyebrows. Yes, beauty’s fundamental. All the women at Rocinha are very vain. They love going to the salon and getting their hair and nails done. Yes, we’re very vain here! It’s the beginning of the month. Like many others, Bianca Ferreira

Has set off to collect her social benefits. The payout at the lottery kiosk. She receives 600 reais a month, the equivalent of 110 euros. Could you manage without this money? How important is social welfare for you? It helps a lot. For many of us.

It’s not enough for the whole month, but it helps. I can buy some stuff bit by bit, not everything. Because prices are going up and up. Social welfare was increased during the 2022 election campaign. But the money still only lasts till the middle of the month. I walk round everywhere and compare prices.

I look to see where it’s cheapest. Here, for instance, flip-flops cost ten reais, so I go where they cost only five. You walk a little further and it’s cheaper. Bianca lives here with her two children João-Miguel and Maria-Eduarda. Kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, children’s room all in 15 square meters. They rarely eat meat.

The rent eats up half of the social welfare. I ask people if I can do them a favour, clean or something. They know how it is, how I live. One gives me five reais, the other ten, and I can buy something with that. Fortunately, the children get lunch at school.

So I only have to worry about their dinner. I put all my energy into that. And you? I often don’t eat anything. If I don’t have anything, I don’t eat. I’m often very sad, and I cry. How many times have I cried when my kids come home from school and say,

Mom do you have a yogurt for me? I cry because I don’t have any. I talk to God, say: Don’t let me down! Ah, I’ve been through a lot. I’m not ashamed to say it; I’ve been down many times. And each time I’ve stood up again. Thanks be to God.

Bianca’s daughter Maria Eduarda takes me to her school. Every day, the bus drives through one of Rio’s wealthiest neighbourhoods. The children of the rich go to expensive private schools the favela-children to state schools. These have a bad reputation in Brazil. They’re considered underfunded. There are good things: The friends, the teachers, the subjects.

What bothers me is the low level of education and organization. What’s missing televisions and materials? Exactly. In music, for example, the teacher has nothing. No instruments? Exactly. Just a book, that’s it. Hardly any state schools have televisions or computers. Staff are poorly paid and mostly it’s a case of one teacher

Facing a room of over forty pupils. For pupils from the favelas, it’s a vicious circle. At the top of society, the elite close ranks thanks to their expensive private education. The favela kids are kind of destined for subordination, working for others. Since the education is poor,

They’ll probably never be able to work their way up. I’ve rarely heard it expressed so clearly that those who live here, like Bianca and her children, have less chance of social advancement. And that’s also due to the structures. No wonder gangs and criminals seem so attractive. Various clans compete for dominance in Rio.

The two most important are the Red Commando and the Third Commando. This is how they present themselves on the internet. What makes the bosses tick? We’ve received a call. It looks like we can meet a member of a drug gang. Not in Rocinha. But in another favela — in Rio’s North Zone.

We’re on our way to meet a contact who’s said we can meet up with a drug gang member. We don’t know if it’ll work out. It was very spontaneous. We’ll have to see; there was a shoot-out there a few days ago.

So the question is: Is it safe and will it stay that way? It’s always difficult to predict. We meet our contacts on a highway. We know them from previous filming. They don’t want to be recognized. We continue together. We’re not allowed to show the exact location. That would put us all in danger.

Now we’re going in, so camera down, camera down please! Sit down! Come in. Carlos is what we should call him. He’s a member of Rio’s biggest gang, the Red Commando, who are currently in charge in Rocinha. Can we talk a bit about your life how did you get into the drug gang?

Out of necessity, as a teenager? I wanted to support my mother. She was a single parent. My younger brothers and I had nothing to eat at home. I had to support her, and I could make money in the gang. So that people in Germany can understand this

What is your everyday life like as a soldier in the drug gang? It’s quiet at five in the morning. I have to see if there’s any sign of the police. They usually come around the same time as the normal workers leave for their jobs.

If they come in the dark in the morning, we confront them. Do you have fixed hours, a fixed wage? My shift’s from seven in the morning until seven in the evening. If we guard the favela well, then we’re in the boss’s good books. He’s always there for us when we need something.

For example, he procures medicines or other important things for us favela residents. That’s what the media never show. They only talk about the bad things. The violence. But never about the good things, the help for the residents. In the past two years, there’ve been three brutal police operations with multiple deaths.

In Complexo Alemão, Jacarezinho and Vila Cruzeiro. It was brutal. Can you comment? It only increases the hatred. One gangster dies, another takes his place. A few days ago, a couple of my colleagues were killed here. Now their friends are demanding revenge. It’s always the same.

People join our gang to get revenge for loved ones. How do you carry on after a fatal shooting like the one a few days ago? That must be hard. It sucks. Are you scared sometimes? I lost my fear a long time ago. I’ve got nothing left to lose anyway.

This is just everyday life. Carlos is 22: He started out as an olheiro, a scout, when he was 15. When people say you’re a criminal, do you feel like one? We’re not criminals. No, not criminals. For the people in my neighbourhood, I’m a hero. Because we guarantee their safety.

There’s no theft here in the favela. But if you go to the famous beaches of Rio, you see thieves everywhere. In here, only the crazy people steal. Have you ever killed someone? No. Others do that. A strange situation somehow. How do you say goodbye to a criminal?

We drove 200 meters into the favela, and suddenly someone in front of us pulled a huge two-meter long rail, out of the ground so we could pass. It was a barrier for the police, to stop them going in there. Immediately; we were surrounded by armed men and we had to get out.

It was in the middle of the intersection, there were vendors, Cars Suddenly we were the focus of everyone’s attention, especially the gangsters, and we had to justify our presence. It was very tense. At that moment, I didn’t know how it would turn out, whether we’d come out in one piece.

So does anyone try to deter young people and children from joining gangs? The state is hardly present in the favela. I’m out with Maria-Eduarda again. On the way to the beach. Do you have a dream for when you’re grown up? I want to be a doctor. And maybe open my own clinic.

What kind? I want to operate on people who need it. I wish you luck! Almost all the surfing students come from Rocinha. The lessons are free several times a week. Funded by donations from individuals, NGOs and companies. That’s difficult. It looks so easy on TV. You need a lot of strength and concentration.

And the water? Cold! Surf instructor Ricardo Bocão wants to give the children a meaningful outlet. And to give them a break from the noisy hectic alleyways. When you get into the sea, it’s like diving into a new life. You leave everyday life and your problems on land.

Ricardo has been giving surfing lessons to children in the favela since 1989. As a teenager, he got into a lot of trouble, he tells me. He was constantly getting into trouble with the police. Do you know what changed my life? Surfing. Let’s pay attention and be quiet for two seconds Do you hear?!

The sound of the sea gives us some of that gigantic energy of the ocean. Mother Nature. Whoever gets in comes out differently. This power of the sea saved me. And that’s exactly what I’m now passing on to the younger generations. What else gives people stability?

A church service in the farthest corner of Rocinha, streamed live to the whole world. Adauto has invited me here. On the way, I’m confronted with the brutal reality again: we have to pass the drug gang checkpoint. Your pulse starts racing. It’s absurd: children playing ball in the alley and five meters away

Six or eight gangsters sitting there armed to the teeth with war machines. I still can’t get my head round the contrast: children playing next to armoured drug dealers. Adauto’s wife Josiane and two of their three children are also here. I’m not particularly religious, but I’m impressed by how dedicated everyone is.

When I was seven years old, I went to church with my grandmother. That’s when God planted the seed to save me. Because at 17, I’d hit rock bottom, was living on the streets and drinking cachaça. And taking all the drugs I could get my hands on.

Sometime later, the seed of God sprouted within me. When I could sink no further and saw no way out. The charismatic evangelical free churches are growing rapidly throughout Brazil. They’ll soon have replaced the Catholics as the largest denomination. They’re becoming increasingly powerful. Some pastors have built up veritable church empires

With excellent political connections. Thanks to God, I have true believers in my church, workers who’ve sinned and been converted. They’ve responded to the Gospel, the word of the lord, and turned to the faith as servants of God, just like Adauto. Thanks to God, miracles are still happening in Rocinha today.

God is true and has saved many lost souls and set them on the right path as his servants. We save many creatures, just as the Bible demands. Among the saved are often dealers. Here they are forgiven. For those who pay homage to God will be rewarded in the here and now.

Every evening, Bianca’s one-room apartment becomes the bedroom for the whole family. Sometimes the rain leaks in, she tells me. I don’t think my children want the same life I had. They’re always telling me: Mom, when I grow up, I’m gonna work and buy you a house so you can retire.

That hurts me, but somehow it also gives me new strength to fight for them — you understand? for them to be better people with a future. Is that possible? They can do it, unlike me; I’ve had very poor eyesight since birth and grew up alone because my mother and grandmother died very young.

My time at Rocinha is slowly coming to an end. On the last evening a small party in the neighborhood. I won’t be able to get the everyday life with violence out of my mind. It doesn’t always show itself, but you can always sense it. But I won’t forget the community spirit either

This power and lightness with which they live their lives. I’ve learned a lot about life here. Met lots of really great people, some working from dawn till dusk. And yes, it’s hectic, but it’s alright. The fact that people treat each other with respect in everyday life makes it all seem okay.

But what it would be like to live here for a few years? I have no idea.

Brazilian favelas are home to migrants and the descendants of slaves. And, they are often located on steep, nearly inaccessible mountain slopes.

There are many assumptions that are made about favelas. For example, that they’re controlled by drug gangs, that life expectancy is low, and that the murder rate is high. But what’s it really like to live in a favela? What do people there need to do to survive? Do they have many – or any – opportunities to move out?

These are some of the questions explored by reporter Matthias Ebert and his team. He lodges with a family in the Favela Rocinha, in a picturesque setting with a view over the beaches of Rio. He meets Bianca, who keeps her head above water with a patchwork of short-term jobs. He meets some of the people controlling the favela. Matthias Ebert can’t reveal their identity. He also meets members of a church, and finds that a new power is emerging in the slums: evangelical Christians wielding their religion as a solution to all problems.

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